adept

In Buddhism there is a sequence of events and practices which supposedly lead one to awakening. They are the 4 Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. In Zen there is no path, no practice, nothing to awaken to. "A special transmission outside the scriptures, Not founded upon words and letters; By pointing directly to your mind It lets you see into your true nature and through this attain Buddhahood." I started looking into the zen record, and what are more generally known as koans. Over 1000 years of documented encounters and instructions. In these writings are the recorded sayings of the zen masters, written down at the time. There are commentaries on these texts by other zen masters, and commentaries on these also. There are no 'official' answers to these koans as is suggested in Zen (Buddhism). There is no mysticism in zen. No ' special enlightened state ' It is here, now. When you 'get it', you will know, without any lingering doubt whatsoever. It is sudden, and so simple that you don't understand how you didn't 'get it' earlier. Mumonkan, Koan 19 'Ordinary Mind is the way' Joshu asked Nansen, "What is the Way?" "Ordinary mind is the Way," Nansen replied. "Shall I try to seek after it?" Joshu asked. "If you try for it, you will become separated from it," responded Nansen. How can I know the Way unless I try for it?" persisted Joshu. Nansen said, "The Way is not a matter of knowing or not knowing. Knowing is delusion; not knowing is confusion. When you have really reached the true Way beyond doubt, you will find it as vast and boundless as space. How can it be talked about on the level of right and wrong?" With those words, Joshu came to a sudden realization.

Hi Folks. I'll start by stating that I don't wish to denigrate anyones spiritual practice or tradition. All I'm offering is a viewpoint which differs from what we have been told about Zen. By Zen, I mean the Chinese Ch'an lineage, and not the bastardised version that found its way to Japan, Korea, and later the Western world. I'm only using the word Zen as it is what people are most familiar with. I found this quote online which I think is a good analogy: "Buddhism and zen both aim for the understanding of "how to not drown". While Buddhism traditions teach how to build bridges and boats and find detours, zen teaches how to swim. Buddhism wants to save you by cultivation, Zen teaches that there is nothing to be saved from, because it's all made up by yourself. Buddhism propagates rules, precepts, vows and dogma, while zen is all about the understanding of your mind and its function." About two decades ago I started to investigate the world of Zen. As we all do, I did some research online and acquired a lot of information. Now and then though, I kept coming across statements which challenged my views. These statements weren't frequent. Just now and again I'd see them mentioned. They were "Zen is not Buddhism" and "Zen is not meditation". Searching out these topics wasn't fruitful but I kept the quotes in the back of my mind for future reference. A lot of time passed. I'd been interested in other things but something was pulling me back to Zen. I wanted to know what Zen is. To be continued......

Thanks for the reply Apech. Yes the hernia was fixed with a mesh, in fact quite a lot was used this time as the rupture was bigger than anticipated. This also may be one of the causes for these post-operative complications. In the past I've recovered fine, only for another hernia to emerge years later. It's interesting that you say that I might be sensitive to qi. All throughout my life I've had a sort of a sixth sense regarding people and situations. Maybe I can detect certain intentions and incidents just before they happen ? I may be picking up on qi and the training and practices that I've done could be amplifying those feelings. I think you might be on to something there. I'll have a look at deep shamatha breathing, thanks for the recommendation.

It's very rare that I visit doctors. Only because of my hernia problems and that it can only be fixed with surgery. Because of the complications post-surgery, my surgeon and family doctor were going to be my first ports of call. I do know a TCM practitioner who will most likely be more helpful than these licensed drug-pushers.

I know. It's an antidepressant. Apparently at low doses it works on nerve pain.

I actually contacted my doctor, not the surgeon who prescribed me the pregabalin, and he put me on amitriptyline. They were ten times worse than the pregabalin. Absolutely awful. It took me a couple of days to put myself right. I'm not taking these types of medication again.

I know an acupuncturist who helped cure me from particularly nasty hay fever a lot of years ago. I may ask him for some advice.

Thank you. This is excellent.

Thanks Nungali. Funnily enough I was thinking of marijuana as I was posting. A friend of mine has had an incredible cancer reversal using cannabis oil. He was given six months to live two years ago with an aggressive bowel cancer and put on chemo. The chemo did nothing for him and so he scoured the internet looking for alternatives. He's now cancer free and the doctors are amazed.

Greetings all. I'm now in my mid-fifties and I consider myself to be very healthy. I rarely get sick. I can't even remember the last time I had a common cold. From childhood I've always been active. I took up several martial arts in my teens and continued into my thirties when I got interested in the internals. Since then I've had a daily qigong and meditation routine for over two decades, have always eaten well and tend to have a positive outlook on life, despite the state of the world these days. The only thing I've had a problem with health wise is recurring abdominal hernias. I've had 4. The last operation earlier this year was far bigger and deeper than my previous ones. My surgeon wanted to repair in such a way so that there was very little chance of another coming back. Recovery took longer because of this, but I noticed something concerning immediately after my procedure. I have a protrusion where the wound is situated and a constant soreness which gets very painful at times. An ultrasound scan found nothing there. No fluid, blood, or another hernia. Nothing. Just a painful, but soft and squidgy pot at the bottom of my abdomen. Very unsightly. My surgeon said that it looks to be fat and muscle which has binded itself to the scar tissue during the recovery process and that I may have to have plastic surgery to remove the unsightly lump if it doesn't subside in the next 6 months. The thing that is really bothering me is the pain. My surgeon has diagnosed me with chronic pain which happens in only 3% of patients hernia surgeries. All regular pain medication is not working and so he prescribed me with Pregabalin, which is normally an anti-convulsant medication but when taken in small doses it is a nerve pain medication. However the side-effects are horrendous and I have experienced some of these already only a few days in. Dizziness, suicidal thoughts, pain in the limbs, headaches, brain fog and lack of co-ordination have plagued me for several days. I feel absolutely terrible and have stopped taking them. I'm looking for alternative means of dealing with this chronic pain, whether that's medication, exercises, energy work, herbal remedies. If anyone has any suggestions I'd ver much appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

Thanks dwai. I intend to act upon this very fortunate gift I have had the good fortune of receiving. The words of encouragement and genuine help is the reason I keep coming back to the forums. The Dao Bums is indeed a special place.

Yes. That's the reason for the thread. I feel like I'm being urged to practice it, even though it's entirely different to me. Maybe what I think is right for me, actually isn't, and forces greater than myself know better.

Thanks for the replies. I'm not sure how, or if to, proceed. Mantra recitation seems at odds with my current practices and study. I've invested a lot of time, and money, in what I do, which all come from Chinese traditions. This is what is totally perplexing about it. Sanskrit mantras weren't even on my radar. A lot of years ago when I was searching for a path, I was briefly interested, but found myself more suited to Daoist practices.

Hi dwai. Yes I remember the mantra vividly, every syllable. I would prefer not to disclose it, even in a PM. I've heard it before, many years ago and also seen it in written form, but mantra is not a practice which I have as part of my cultivation routine, which is what has me so intrigued. Also the clarity of the whole experience. Like a dream but not a dream. Very difficult to put into words. After writing the OP, I did some searching online. Some were of the understanding that it is a very auspicious sign that should be pursued.

Greetings all. I would like some advice and insight on something which happened to me last night/this morning. I was dreaming that I was repeatedly reciting a Sanskrit mantra. There were no visuals accompanying the sounds, only the mantra, entering my mind, and then me reciting it. As I started to wake from the dream, I was actually reciting the mantra out loud and kept repeating it. When I was fully awake I felt incredible. Is there a reason for this ? Am I being subconsciously prompted to follow a certain path ? A sign from God ? It's still so fresh in my mind which is also unusual as dreams tend to dissipate as time passes.